Happy Birthday

His Divine Grace Om Vishnupad
Srila Bhakti Nirmal Acharya Maharaj
11 April 2013

America is the richest country in this world, is it not? I heard some statistics that last year so many people from rich families committed suicide. They have no problem with food, no problem with the house, no problem with money, their society is the richest on the planet, but why do so many people from that society commit suicide? You think that money is everything, a house is everything, or that a family is everything, but they have everything—a good wife, a good house, many cars, so much wealth and opulence—why do so many people then commit suicide? They are number one in the world by the rate of suicide...

It comes through association...

Devotee: It is *** Prabhu's birthday today.

Is it? Good. What does he want on his birthday?

Devotee: I want your blessings.

You will take the blessings, but do you have space to keep it? Is your pot empty or full?

...OK, happy birthday. May Krishna bless you. Take care of your spiritual life, maintain your spiritual life. Life is very short, do not run behind maya, do not run behind money, ladies, and pratistha. These things are very dangerous for spiritual life. Even if somebody does service, their spiritual life can be destroyed through that service if ego comes and you think, "I have done so many things," "I did this, I did this, I did this," etc. This is very bad. If the feeling comes to you that "I do not do anything," it is good for you.

It is very nice, it is your birthday today... Maya is very strong, take care of your spiritual life. If we do not maintain our life properly, we can easily destroy, spoil not only our spiritual life, but this whole manusya-janma, human birth. So many birthdays will come in your life—millions and millions of birthdays will come... Why should we be afraid? Jivatma, the soul, cannot be burnt, cannot be destroyed. So, every year your birthday will come and you will grow and grow, but you must calculate: one year of your life has passed, how much have your proceeded in your spiritual life? How much have you improved your practising life during this year of your life?

On your birthday you can ask the Lord, ask Gurudev only, "Prabhu, please engage me more and more in serving You. I am a fallen soul, I have no quality or qualification, but You can engage me. Yogyata-vichare kichhu nahi pai tomara karuna-sara: through my qualification, I will not get anything, my only hope is that mercy is above justice. I will not get anything through justice, my only sambal [livelihood, asset] is mercy." This is the way to celebrate a birthday—by doing Guru-puja... This is our main duty.

Do you understand now how to celebrate your birthday? Do you understand what your duty is on your birthday? Vaishnav seva! How many Vaishnav have you paid obeisance to today?

—I have invited devotees to my birthday...

You should pay obeisance and give a piece of cake or a sweet ball to everybody, that is your service, OK?

· · • • • · ·

{ 2001  |   2002  |   2003  |   2005  |   2009  |   2010  |   2011  |   2012 }
{ 2013  |   2014  |   2015  |   2016  |   2017  |   2018  |   2019  |   2020  |   2021 }

• Download (3 Mb)